'Pay Banding' Spooks Some Workers, Makes Sense to Others

[Khephra]

'Pay Banding' Spooks Some Workers, Makes Sense to Others

By Stephen Barr
Wednesday, October 22, 2003; Page B02


The possibility that civil service employees at the Defense and Homeland Security departments may be taken out of the General Schedule and put into "pay banding" systems has created some concern in those workforces, which are among the largest in the government.

For example, some Homeland Security employees who participated in focus groups during the summer "voiced reservations about pay banding and other performance-based alternatives," said a report prepared for the Bush administration by the consulting firm of Booz Allen Hamilton.

Those employees "did not understand pay banding or the need for it," the report said. In particular, the employees were concerned that managers would have too much discretion over pay decisions and that new hires would end up being paid at a higher rate than experienced employees, the report said.

Numerous employees are unsettled by the prospect of giving up the General Schedule, with its 15 grades and within-grade pay raises, for a system that combines two or more grades into wide salary ranges and that may not guarantee a pay raise at regular intervals. Many of them say that they already see bosses playing favorites or that they work in a large agency where the boss does not know the front-line employees all that well.

more...............

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61954-2003Oct21.html

[tom_paine]

1. "Pay banding" another word for Bushevik Feudalism

This gives them the opportunity to further purge governmental organizations, replacing them with Bushevik Loyalists who will, without regard for law, ethics, or anything else, utilize these agencies as political bldugeons on "enemies" upon requests from their Bushevik Masters

"The struggle is a light one now as we are able to employ all the means of the state. Radio and press are at our disposal."
--Josef Goebbels

[papau]

2. Means no raises - no "steps" - time in job and evaluation mean nothing

only kissing ass -

but it is the same system used in non-union workplaces in most of the US.

In the 1880's we said control of Gov workers should not be via the paycheck whims of the party in control.

The GOP now want to monderize our system back to the 1880's - but with 2103 buzzwords like pay bands. So you get a band - and promotion may, or may not, take you out of the band, raises may be every 6 months or every 18 months or never - depending on the boss, others with same job may have their job get a unique job write up and payband if they voted "right" and dropped some "campaign contributions" off, and providing the boss with a mistress gives one points toward health care - as long as you both condemn the thought of sex outside of marriage.

Clinton integrity has been replaced by what the media likes as "values".

[revcarol]

3. Truly a slippery slope here.

I hope ALL labor unites against this.